Saturday, December 24, 2005

What do I like about Tom Clancy novels? The moral ambiguity of many of their characters and themes. What don’t I like about Tom Clancy novels? The heavy-handed good guy vs. bad guy way in which they all end. Popov is the most interesting character in this book, the ex-KGB spook who is recruited unknowingly by environmental terrorists and who both serves them and rips them off until he discovers their nefarious plot, and who then takes action into his own hands to save both himself and the planet. John Clark, the titular Rainbow Six, seems little more than a support player in this drama, but of course he has to be brought on stage at the end as the good guy who vanquishes the bad guys. Popov certainly isn’t a good guy, but he’s not a bad guy either, and that ultimately is what makes him the most interesting character in the book.